TSN’s Darren Dreger said the Toronto Maple Leafs are interested in extending Mitch Marner, who is entering the final year of his six-year, $65.4 million deal with the team.
“A long-term extension is a possibility,” Dreger said September 9 on TSN 1050’s “First Up.” “I believe that’s what Marner wants. And, I think the Toronto Maple Leafs are keenly interested in that, provided that it makes long-term sense. Nobody is in that place just yet… But I do think there’s a good appetite on both sides to get something done.”
Dreger said an extension could happen before the calendar flips to 2025 because Toronto will want to avoid trade talks regarding Marner as the March deadline approaches.
“There’s good dialogue between [Marner’s agent] Darren Ferris and [Leafs general manager] Brad Treliving, they’ve got a good relationship. But they’re not in heavy negotiations and again both sides are okay with that. Not to say that that can’t ramp up at some point in-season, but there doesn’t appear to be a rush at this stage,” Dreger added.
Marner, a native of suburban Toronto, has been with the Maple Leafs since the team selected him fourth overall in the 2015 draft. He’s skated in 576 games, recording 194 goals and 445 assists for 639 points.
Marner Wants to Remain with the Maple Leafs
Following the Maple Leafs’ elimination in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs by the Boston Bruins, Marner made it clear he wanted to remain in Toronto for the foreseeable future.
“That’d be a goal. I’ve expressed my love for this place, this city. Obviously, I’ve grown up here. We’ll start thinking about that now and trying to figure something out. … It means the world to me,” Marner told the media on May 6.
“We’re looked upon as kind of gods here, to be honest, and something that you really appreciate,” he said. “The love that you get here from this fan base and this attention is none like any other. You saw with the [NBA’s Toronto] Raptors a couple of years ago, the love [fans] still have for a lot of those players [who helped them win a championship in 2019] that they had to trade off this year. That’s the love you want,” Marner added.
In the 2024 Stanley Cup playoffs, Marner recorded 1 goal and 2 assists for 3 points in 7 games.
Maple Leafs GM Hints at More Moves
Although the Maple Leafs did bolster their blue line in free agency, Toronto has been quiet since July 1. However, ahead of training camps opening in late September, Maple Leafs general manager Brad Treliving has hinted at the team making more moves.
“To me, we’ve still got five weeks or so till camp. And, you know, we’re not set yet. We continue to look at ways to make our team better,” Treliving said August 14 on TSN 1050’s “OverDrive.” “I said at the end of the year we’re going to look at everything.
“Sometimes people fall in love with ‘let’s make a big change just to make a big change.’ At the end of the day, you can go out and make big changes,” Treliving added. “If they’re not making your team better, to me it doesn’t make any sense to just make a change just to stand up and say ‘look at it, we made this big change.'”
Toronto opens its 2024-25 NHL season on the road on October 9 against the Montreal Canadiens.
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Insider Gives Update on Future of Maple Leafs’ Mitch Marner